


too little too late

by marcoisamango



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Gen, Major character death - Freeform, Mourning, hurt with comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-19
Updated: 2017-07-19
Packaged: 2018-12-04 02:10:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11545260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marcoisamango/pseuds/marcoisamango
Summary: The best things in life are the things that leave a long lasting impression, regardless of whether they last for long.





	too little too late

 

 

You would expect that something as beautiful as she would leave the world the way she came in, gracefully and purposefully. Never in a million years would you anticipate the feeling of udder dread at the announcement of her passing. She left the earth in a way so unexpected, quickly and painfully. 

 

The day the Marinette Dupain-Cheng died was a day nobody had seen coming and a day that nobody ever wanted to see. The weather betrayed the feelings of the city, shining obliviously upon them, almost as if nothing had happened, as if she were still breathing along with all the pure and living things around her. A unanimous silence wallowed in Paris, as nobody dared to be the first to say anything.

 

There was no scent of baked goods coming through bakery windows, no faint chatter among the civilians of Paris, no street performers entertaining the wealthier, no rich reaching out to the poor. There was a certain way of the world when Marinette was in it, and suddenly nobody knew how the world worked anymore.

 

Things continued to go on after that brief period, though people had still not moved on. People went to work, people raced upon traffic, kids went to school. That's how everything worked, so why did it feel like the world wasn't working anymore?

 

One particular class at Collège Françoise DuPont festered quietly. The auroa of the classroom completely different. All students lacked all spirit and sense of life. Mademoiselle  Bustier was the first to break the silence.

 

"As you all have heard, Marinette is no longer with us." A choked sob was held back from Alya, who looked like a train wreck, clad with a box of tissues and no phone in sight.

 

"Instead of doing anything productive today, I think it would be best if we could just be with each other and share some fond memories to honor Marinette." Mlle. Bustier said, gaining timid nods from her students.

 

"If anyone would like to come up and share with the class, feel free or you all can talk quietly amongst yourselves." 

 

Nobody moved for a few minutes before Alya eventually stood up and made her way to the front, leaving her tissues at her and Marinette's, no, her desk. She shook her palms and clenched them together as she took a deep breath and spoke.

 

"I don't even know if I can get through this without crying." Alya laughed bitterly, the chuckle void of all cheerfulness. "But I have to say something to honor my best friend. Or I guess she's not anymore. She deserves that. She deserved better. She deserved the stars and the moon and the whole damn solar system, but she'll never get it." Fresh tears welled up in Alya's eyes. She gulped down the salty siliva in her throat and continued. "She would've done great things, and I would bet my everything on it. Marinette was the most talented, single most wonderful person I have and will ever know." 

 

The rest of the students began to stream tears down their faces along with Alya. Deskmates joined hands for comfort, and leaned on each other's shoulders.

 

"If I knew my last conversation with Marinette would have been the last one, I would have never stopped it. The last thing I said to her was probably a quick mention of something I was preoccupied with at the time. I never got to say goodbye." Alya breathed and coughed, as she felt her body ache with exhaustion. "And now I never will." She whispered.

 

That was the last thing she had said before she had burst out in tears, covering her face and letting loose. Nino quickly grabbed the tissue box and rushed to Alya, escorting her back to her seat and hugging her.

 

A silent wondering of who would speak next hung in the air before Chloé stood up from her seat and walked up the front, turning to the class. Everyone prepared themselves for the worst when she suddenly said something nobody expected.

 

"I'm sorry." Nearly everyone's eyes widened with shock. "I'm sorry to anyone I've ever caused pain, to anyone I've ever harassed or embarrassed. But most importantly, I'm sorry to Marinette, because I treated her horribly." To everyone's surprise, Chloé was crying along with them. Everyone was waiting for her to jump up and say she was joking, but even they thought that was pretty unlikely. "I was always so jealous of Marinette because she had everything I could ever want, and I thought it would make me feel better if she had something nobody could ever want, and that was me. More specifically, me bothering and mocking her every chance I could get. But all I know is if I could turn back time and change the way I treated her," Chloé took a deep breath and wiped the dried tears off her face. "I would do it in a heartbeat."

 

"I'm sorry Marinette." She looked up and mumbled, almost so quietly that everyone could barely hear it. "I'm so sorry." 

 

 

***

 

Soon enough, everyone had had their time up front to reminisce about Marinette. It quickly turned into heartfelt stories and compliments and it wasn't as sad anymore. When it was Adrien's turn, it went by in a blur. He could bearly remember what he had said, expect for one thing.

 

"Marinette and I didn't get off to the best start, but that didn't get in the way of our friendship. It wasn't until later on the second day of school that we became friends." He smiled, and in the back of his mind, he was reliving the moment it all began. "It was raining and I turned to give her my umbrella. And I looked in her eyes and suddenly I could hear a symphony playing in my head." Adrien moved his hands in crazy gestures and looked like a mad man, but continued anyway. "There was a string quartet and a whole ballad of some sort. And then a flash of thunder went off and I stared into her eyes." He didn't notice when tears started slowly forming in his eyes. "And then I just knew."

 

When lunch rolled around, Alya and Adrien had stayed behind. They had both seemed to have lost their appetite, and besides Alya had to speak to him.

 

Alya slid into Nino's seat next to Adrien and stared off into space. Even after accepting the fact that her best friend was gone, it still felt so unreal. To have someone who've spend nearly everyday with suddenly be gone did that to a person.

 

Alya didn't know what came over her when she blurted out, "She was in love with you."

 

Adrien mouth gaped open. "What?" He croaked. 

 

Alya nodded. "She always has been. Ever since that day with the umbrella, she's been crazy about you."

 

Adrien wasn't looking at her, instead he had turned to look at the empty seat behind him. "This whole time?"

 

"Yeah." Alya murmured. "I just thought that after what you said up there," she pointed up by the center of the room. "that you felt the same way."

 

Adrien smiled sadly. "I did." By now he had turned back around to look at Alya. All she could do was think of how sad this was. He liked her the whole time.

 

A moment of serenity rained over them before Adrien spoke. 

 

"She was Ladybug."

 

It was now Alya's turn to be surprised. "What?" She breathed.

 

"She didn't know that I knew. I actually just figured it out." He fiddled with the silver ring on his finger.

 

"How?" She asked. "How'd you know?"

 

He locked eyes with her with such intensity and seriousness. He was changed, he had changed and he will forever be changed by this. She knew that right then and there.

 

"Because I'm Chat Noir, and when she died, she didn't get hit by a car. Hawkmoth," Alya shuddered at the name. "Hawkmoth killed her."

 

It was so much information to gain in such a short amount of time. Alya's brain went into overdrive the way it would when she stayed up late all night long. 

 

"This isn't the way I wanted to find out." She said. Adrien shot her a confused look and Alya shook her head. "I knew one day I would find the identities of Ladybug and Chat Noir, somehow, someday, but I never thought it would be like this."

 

"Me either." Adrien sighed. Alya rested her head on his shoulder as he wrapped an arm around hers. They stared off into space thinking an endless possibility of things that went wrong and how they just needed one thing to go right.

 

 

 

***

 

"You know you could bring her back, kid." Plagg floated above Adrien's face as Adrien held a familiar box in his hand. "You have both of the miraculous."

 

"All I can think about is how long and hard people have fought to get these. Thousands of lives sacrificed along the way, and I get both of them without even trying." Adrien looked upon the two most powerful objects in the universe, one in each hand. "I thought I was supposed to have bad luck." He mumbled.

 

He continued to stare at them as if something were suddenly about happen. Would it be so bad? Would it be the right think to do? It would bring her back and that was all he ever wanted.

 

"Would you just decide already, kid? The suspense is killing me!" 

 

Adrien stabbed the earring in his ears, ignoring the sting and blood along with that choice. Tikki appeared and gazed at Adrien in shock. Before she could say anything, he spoke.

 

"Tikki, Plagg, transform me." 

 

A sudden rush of power ran through Adrien's veins in a tingling sensation. He felt powerful, energized, and for the first time in a while, strong. He looked down at himself to see him wearing his usual cat-like suit, expect it was red and polka dotted. He had not only his baton, but also Ladybug's yo-yo.

 

"Cataclysmic Charm!" He shouted.

 

His legs began to give out as he fell to the ground, weak knees and cold. He breathed heavily and looked up to see a feminine figure above him.

 

"Adrien?"

 

"Hello, My Lady." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this work! If you did, please leave a comment and give kudos. Lol I was actually considering having Adrien bring his mom back instead of Marinette, but it didn't really fit with the story. Feel free to request a prompt or an idea for a work! Don't forget to check out some of my other works!
> 
> Merci!


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